Chandigarh: Men with Type II diabetes in Punjab have better knowledge and more positive attitudes towards managing the disease than women, but neither gender translates this understanding effectively into self-care, a study has found.The study, Gender-Based Disparities in Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Among Type-II Diabetes Patients in Punjab, India: Insights for Tailored Interventions, was conducted by Sandeep Kaur, Dr Sidharth Mehan and Dr Ghanshyam Das Gupta. Published in Current Pharmaceutical Design in 2026, it assessed 500 patients (303 men and 197 women) attending healthcare facilities in Moga.The researchers found that 32.8% of the participants had poor knowledge scores, while 38.6% had fair scores and 28.6% had good scores.At 33.7%, men had higher proportions of good knowledge scores than women, 20.8%. The gender gap was also evident in attitudes towards the disease. Good attitude scores were recorded by 50.2% men, compared with 36% women. In contrast, poor attitude scores were reported by 50.3% women and 29% men.Differences in knowledge and attitudes did not translate into a significant gender difference in self-care practices. Poor practice scores were recorded by 31% of both men and women. Overall, 51.2% of patients had fair practice scores, while only 17.8% had good scores.The study found differences in the aspects of diabetes that men and women recognised.More men identified smoking and alcohol as lifestyle risk factors, and more recognised exercise as a management option. Men were also more likely to identify sexual dysfunction, kidney failure, nerve damage and eye problems or blindness as complications of diabetes.Women were more likely to identify low blood sugar with dizziness, nausea and tremors as a complication.Education and other demographic factors were associated with patients’ knowledge and attitudes. Those with bachelor’s and master’s degrees had higher knowledge scores than participants with other educational backgrounds. Higher knowledge scores were also reported among patients with health insurance, those with a family history of diabetes, those who attended clinics every three months and those with high levels of physical activity.The study found that 37.4% participants had poor attitude scores, 18% had fair scores and 44.6% had good scores. Attitudes were also associated with factors like age, education, occupation, health insurance, family history, physical activity and frequency of clinic visits.Gaps in routine self-care were also evident. While 54.8% of participants reported having a glucometer, 52.4% said they did not check their blood sugar regularly. Another 59.6% reported that they did not examine their feet regularly. The researchers also found that 81.4% participants had HbA1c levels above 6.5%.The analysis found significant correlations between knowledge, attitude and practice scores. Knowledge scores were associated with fasting and random blood sugar levels, age, attitude scores and practice scores. Attitude scores were associated with HbA1c levels and age, while practice scores were associated with fasting blood sugar and age.The authors noted that the findings may not be directly applicable to other regions because the research was conducted in Moga and may reflect local socio-cultural factors.